Culvert-mold.



G. B. MURRAY.

GULVERT MOLD.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 22, 1910.

1,029,024, Patented June 11, 1912.

COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH c0., WASHINGTON, D. c.

G. B. MURRAY.

CULVERT MOLD.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 22, 1910.

Patented June 11, 1912.

2 8HEETS-SHEET 2.

GORDON B. MURRAY, OF GRANT CITY, MISSOURI.

CULVERT-MOLD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed September 22, 1910.

Patented June 11, 1912. Serial No. 583,230.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, G RDON B. MURRAY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Grant City, in the county of Worth and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Culvert- Molds, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to concrete culvert molds and has for its object the provision of a sectional mold whose parts can be quickly and easily assembled or separated and are of simple, strong, durable and inexpensive construct-ion.

With this general object in view and others as hereinafter appear, the invention consists in certain novel and peculiar-features of construction and combination of parts as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1, is a top plan view of a culvert mold embodying my invention. Fig. 2, is an enlarged vertical section of the same on the line IIII of Fig. 1, said figure also showing the culvert complete in a trench dug to receive it. Fig. 3, is a central vertical section of a part of the mold. Fig. 4, is a perspective view of the complete culvert. Fig. 5, is a view illustrating the method of assembling the parts together which form the inner member of the mold.

In the said drawings, 1v indicates a pair of substantially U-shaped supports provided with arms 2, to hold the supports in upright posit-ion and said supports are concaved at their upper edges and provided in said concaved edges with grooves 3. A number of bars 4 are laid upon the concaved edges of the supports to form an arc of a circle, and after sufiicient bars 4 have been placed upon the supports to form the lower half of a cylinder, a pair of end frames 5 are arranged adjacent to the opposite ends of the bars 4; said end frames consisting preferably of rectangular body portions 6 having outwardly diverging. wings 7. The Wings consist preferably of parallel parts 8 and 9 spaced apart at their outer ends by vertical strips 10, the inner edges of the parts 9 being of arcuate shape and describing segments of a circle concentric with respect to the recessed or concaved edges of the supports 1, and secured to the inner faces of parts 9 and flush with and corresponding to the curvature of their inner edges are curved angle irons 9 (see Figs. 1 and .2) though these irons in practice, may be curved shoulders formed integral with the parts 9.

The body portions 6 of the end frames, are provided with inwardly-projecting circular flanges 11 (Figs. 2 and 3), corresponding in diameter to the recesses or concavities 4, in the supports 1, and with central openings 11*, to receive the opposite ends of the tube 12, the body portions 6 of the end frames 5, when fitted on said tube bearing against the opposite ends of bars 4 and against collars 12 on said tube.

The tube 12 is provided at a suitable distance from each end with a pair of longitudinal opposite slots 13, and extending slidingly through each pair of said slots is an elongated nut 14, engaging the inner end of a screw rod 15 within and projecting beyond the adjacent end of the tube 12, and fitting loosely on said projecting end is a washer 16, and a clamping nut 17 having a handle 18, by which it may be conveniently turned.

Secured at a suitable point on the tube 12, outward of each nut 14, is a collar 19, and fitting slidingly on the tube inward of each of said collars 19, is a slidable collar 20 engaged at its outer end by the adjacent nut 14 and said collar 20, is pressed against collar 19 by .a coiled spring 21, surrounding the tube 12, and bearing at its opposite ends against said collars 1,9 and 20.

Surrounding the tube near each pair .of collars l9 and 20 and fitting snugly against the inner sides or faces of bars 4, is an expansion ring 22, consisting of a plurality of .a-rcuate sections 23 provided with inwardly projecting lugs 24, pivotally connected by inwardly diverging links 25, t0 collars 19 and 20, the handles 18 being turned sufficiently to expand the rings enough to lightly clamp the bars 4 upon the supports 1. After the parts are thus arranged additional bars 4jare fitted uponthose directly supported by the supports, and upon the rings 22' until nearly a complete cylinder is produced, it being noticed by reference to Fig. 2 that a key-strip26 is then fitted between the adjacent bars 4 to complete the cylinder, said key-strip being of outwardly tapering or wedge form in cross section so that when free to do so it will drop down from between the adjacent bars 4 as hereinafter explained, it being also noticed that the ends of the bars A and key-strip 26, are prevented from springing inward by the flanges 11 of the end frames, as shown most clearly in Fig. 3.

When thecylinder or inner member of the form is completed, the parts thereof are bound together by encircling bands or wires 27, the ends of the wires forming the bands being twisted or otherwise secured together as at 28, and for convenience a pair of said wires are initially placed in the grooves 3, in the concave edges of the supports 1, so that after the cylinder 'or inner form is completed, their ends may be quickly and easily bent over the cylinder and twisted together as explained.

After the parts are arranged as explained, the mold is lifted off the supports 1, and lowered into a trench or ditch 29, dug across the roadway or at any other point where the culvert is to be stationed, it being understood that the ends of the ditch will be flared to accommodate the wings 7. A pair .of bars are then ar- .ranged edgewise against the lower inner corners of parts 9 of the wings to form parallel longitudinally-extending walls and then concrete is shoveled or poured onto the ground between said walls and below the cylinder or inner form, until the depth of the concrete approximately equals the height of said walls. A second pair of bars 30 is then placed edgewise upon bars 30 and fiatwise against the curved shoulders or angle irons 9, the bars 30 approximately paralleling the cylinder or inner form. Concrete is then introduced at each side of the inner form until approximately level with the upper edges of bars 80 A second pair of bars 30 is then placed upon the first pair and against said shoulders or angle irons and additional concrete is introduced and then additional bars and additional concrete are deposited alternately in place in the manner explained until the walls of the outer form, constituted by said bars 30 and 30 attain approximately the same level as the upper side of the cylinder or inner form, after which cement is filled in until flush with the upper edges of the end frames, a trowel or float 31 being employed to round the upper surface of the concrete as shown in Fig. 2.

After the concrete becomes set, the operator turns handles 18 until the nuts 17 are disengaged from the threaded ends of rods 15, and at the same time springs 21, force said rods inwardly to contract the rings 23 sufliciently to withdraw them from engagement with the inner form, it being noticed that in this contracting movement the collars 20 slide inward and impart corresponding movement through pressure on nuts 14: to the rods 15. The unscrewing are withdrawn from the said rods.

they The washers 16 are then slipped off the rods, and the separable parts of the wings, viz., parts 9 and 10, are then unfastened from the parts 8, so that the former may be withdrawn in the direction indicated by the arrows Fig. 1, the body portion 6 and portions 8 being pulled directly away from the ends of the culvert.

.The tube 12 and the parts carried thereby may then be withdrawn from the inner form and as this is accomplished the key strip 26 will drop down, the same being true of the bars 4: above the plane of the axis of the culvert. All of the bars 4 and the key strip are then withdrawn endwise from the operations of the nuts continue until then removed, the parts 9 and 10 thereof being first withdrawn. The bars 30 and 30 constituting the walls of the outer form may then be removed from the trench, be ing withdrawn endwise or lifted upwardly therefrom as most convenient. Loose earth, not shown, is then employed to fill the trench around the culvert and is tamped in place in the customary manner.

The provision of the culvert with the laterally projecting wings tends to anchor it reliably in position as regards endwise creeping movement or rotation, and also tends to direct water into the culvert and protect the ground immediately surrounding its mouth from being washed out. The wings also act as a support or brace for the roadway to prevent the same caving in at the sides adjacent to the end of the culvert.

For large culverts especially, I contemplate the use of reinforcing means, such for instance as rods 32, which rods when the inner form is set up arearranged parallel with and near the outer side of the form with their ends projecting into the body portions of'the end frames, as shown in Fig. 1, the rods being completely incased in concrete except the ends fitting in the end frames when the culvert is completed, and after the forms are removed from the. culvert, washers 33 and nuts 34 are secured upon'the ends of said rods and thus add to the strength of the connection bet-ween the body and wings of the culvert.

From the above description it will be apparent that I have produced a mold for making artificial stone culverts which embodies the desirable features enumerated in the statement of the object of the invenculvert. The opposite end of the'frame 5 is edge to edge, the topmost bar constituting a key strip susceptible of dropping from be- 4 spaced inwardly from the body portion of the end frames, an outer form consisting of boards arranged edgewlse one upon another and forming walls to rest upon the ground and substantially paralleling the opposite sides of the inner form; each of said walls extending from one of said pairs of wings to the corresponding part of the wing of the other end frame, expansion rings fitting in the innerform, a tube. extending axially through the inner form and the end frames and provided with slots, collars secured to fixed points on said tube, slidable collars also mounted on said tube, outwardly converging links pivotally connecting said 001- lars with the expansion ring, screw rods fitting in said tube, nuts screwed on the ends of said rods and projecting through said slots and engaging the last-named collars, and nuts engaging the outer ends of said rods at the outer sides of said end frames for imparting longitudinal movement to said rods and the nuts connected thereto and engaging the last-named collars.

2. A. culvert mold, comprising an inner hollow form, consisting of bars arranged edge to edge, the topmost bar constituting a key strip susceptible of dropping from between the adjacent bars when unsupported, end frames fitting against the ends of the inner form, and provided with laterally pro- Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

jecting wings embodying parts formed at their inner edges to correspond with and spaced outward from said inner form and spaced inwardly from the body portion of the end frames, an outer form consisting of boards arranged edgewise one upon another and forming walls to rest upon the ground and substantially paralleling the opposite sides of the inner form; each of said walls extending from one of said pairs of wings to the corresponding part of the wing of the other end frame, expansion rings fitting in the inner form, a tube extending axially through the inner form and the end frames and provided with slots, collars secured to fixed points on said tube, slidable collars also mounted on said tube, outwardly converging links pivot-ally connecting said collars with the expansion ring, screw rods fitting in said tube, nuts screwed on the ends of said rods and projecting through said slots and engaging the last-named collars, springs mounted on said tube between adjacent collars and tending to press the slidable collars away from the fixed collars to effect the collapse of the expansion rings,

and nuts screwed upon the outer ends of saidrods at the outer sides of said end frames and adapted when turned in one direction to impart longitudinal outward movement to said rods and corresponding movement to the slidable collars to effect the expansion of said rings.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature, in the presence of two witnesses.

GORDON B. MURRAY. Witnesses:

Jon SIMMoNs, W. E. FERGUSON.

Washington, D. G. 

